Significant Court Decision on Fiscal State Aid Author: JHA Amazon Apple ECJ EU Cases EU News Fiat Reference Tax Starbucks Yesterday, the ECJ held that the General Court erred in law in concluding that a state measure granted to Spanish companies was not selective because the Commission had not identified a particular category of undertakings exclusively favoured by the tax measure concerned. READ MORE Sanctions: annulment grounds for VTB, Sberbank and Agrotikos Sinetairismos published in the OJ Author: JHA Agrotikos Sinetairismos Profiti Ilia Council Decision 2014/512/CFSP Council Decision 2014/659/CFSP Council Regulation 833/2014 EU Cases Sberbank of Russia VTB Bank Both VTB Bank and Sberbank are seeking annulment of Council Decision 2014/512/CFSP, Council Regulation 833/2014, Council Decision 2014/659/CFSP and Council Regulation 960/2014, in so far as these measures apply to them. VTB Bank also requests that the Court declare illegal or inapplicable Article 1 of Council Decision 2014/512/CFSP, Article 5 of Regulation 833/2014, Article 1 of Council Decision 2014/659/CFSP and Article 1(5) of Regulation 960/2014. Sberbank also requests a declaration of illegality as detailed in its application and an order that the Council should pay its costs. Agrotikos Sinetairismos Profiti Ilia is seeking annulment of Council Regulation 833/2014 and an order that the Council should pay its costs. READ MORE High Court judgment in Littlewoods case Author: JHA EU Cases High Court Littlewoods The decision of the High Court in the Littlewoods case on the availability of compound interest on claims for the recovery of unlawfully levied VAT was handed down today by Mr Justice Henderson. The Claimants have been successful. The judgment has significance for all EU claims where compound interest is sought. READ MORE Exit Taxes Author: JHA Article 63 TFEU Capital Gains Tax CJEU EU Cases Germany The ECJ ruled that Article 63 TFEU should be interpreted as meaning that the legitimate objective of maintaining the balanced allocation of the power to impose taxes between Member States may justify a difference in the treatment of investors but only if it was impossible for Germany to tax capital gains, once realised. It was further ruled that where the taxation of unrealised capital gains is concerned, it is proportionate for the taxable person to be provided with the following payment options: (1) staggered; or (2) immediate. READ MORE Belgium notional interest deduction regime contrary to EU law Author: JHA Belgium CJEU EU Cases EU Law Freedom of Establishment The Court concluded that the regime discouraged a Belgian company from carrying out its activity through a permanent establishment situated in another state and, consequently, amounted to a breach of the freedom of establishment in Article 49 TFEU. READ MORE Exit Taxes Author: JHA Article 49 TFEU CJEU Denmark EU Cases EU Law Freedom of Establishment The CJEU, following recent case law, concluded that the Danish rules on exit taxation of cross-border transfers of assets within a company are contrary to the freedom of establishment within the meaning of Article 49 TFEU. READ MORE Interest on a Tax Refund Case: C-565/11 Mariana Irime Author: JHA CJEU EU Cases Littlewoods Tax Litigation The CJEU has held that it is unlawful for a national system to limit the interest granted on repayment of tax levied in breach of EU law to the interest accruing from the day following the date of the claim for repayment of the tax as opposed to when the tax was actually paid. READ MORE ECJ must still answer VAT exemption question for defined contribution schemes after Wheels ruling Author: JHA CJEU EU Cases International Tax Review Premium Publication Tax Litigation The European Court of Justice (ECJ) handed down judgment in Wheels Common Investment Fund Trustees Ltd and Others v Commissioners for HMRC on March 7 2013. Robert Waterson, senior associate at Hage Aaronson, analyses the ruling and explains why the ECJ still needs to answer the question of whether management services provided to defined contribution schemes could qualify for VAT exemption. Originally printed in International Tax Review Premium, 14 March 2013. READ MORE
